informal learning reflections

Archive for the 'Everyday life' Category

In a recent post I wrote about making every day count because life is precious and we never know when it might end. Today I came across this song by Priscilla Ahn entitled Dream. Priscilla has managed to sum up the point I was trying to make only she does it a lot more succinctly. […]

I am sitting in bed feeling totally exhausted. It would appear that I also look exhausted. For days now people have been saying to me, “You look so tired” quickly followed by, “Have you considered a holiday?” I have to ask myself why, when I’ve had a wonderful two week holiday recently and I came […]

In my workplace we have a daily tradition that really brings us together as a team. It centres on the ‘Five Minute Quiz’ published in our local daily newspaper The Dominion Post. This quiz consists of ten questions on a variety of trivia which always seems to spark interesting conversations, debate and a whole lot […]

For a while now I have been thinking about how I would answer a particular question. This is no ordinary question. It is one with far reaching consequences. This question relates to something that faces every single human being whether we want to acknowledge this fact or not. We cannot negotiate our way out of […]

On the bus this morning I was having a conversation with a colleague who is a structural engineer. We were talking about the storms of the preceding days which have been really severe and caused extensive damage across the country. In particular we were focusing on the many reports of houses that have had to […]

This evening I attended a celebration at Parliament honouring the contribution Croatians have made to New Zealand since the first settlers arrived in 1858. Today, 150 years later, life is very different for over 100,000 New Zealanders who claim Croatian heritage thanks to the hard work and determination of their (and my) ancestors. They have […]

I received an email this morning from a friend in Austin, Texas. The subject line said “This will warm you” and the message was a link to a video. My first reaction to that what I was watching was one of scepticism. “Is this for real?” I asked my husband. As I watched the video […]

You cannot change the cards you are dealt. Just how you play the hand. Randy Pausch I have written about Randy Pausch a few times in my blog. I feel as though he is a personal acquaintance yet I have never met this man and I never will. For months a daily ritual of mine […]

Today began with an air of excitement and trepidation. Despite all the planning I felt disorganised. Being unwell didn’t help the situation. I had to make decisions and take action because time was marching by. I kept thinking of a mantra my husband, Lynsey, often recites: I’m efficient and effective and I get things done. […]

After hanging up from a Skype call with my daughter in London this evening I stumbled across this video clip on YouTube of The Goodnight Kiwi. I remembered this nightly ritual that appeared on our television screens and felt a warm glow inside. I was transported back to a time when things were very different […]